


the shelter raid

by calibriluu



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Christmas, Multi, Robbery, ventures and puppies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-24
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2019-02-19 11:10:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13122507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/calibriluu/pseuds/calibriluu
Summary: Thomas has an idea. James wished he didn’t procrastinate on Christmas gifts.And Aaron probably doesn’t like surprises, even fluffy ones.





	the shelter raid

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BadRomantic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BadRomantic/gifts).



> Had to rewrite a few times before it sounded right, hope you enjoy!

A quiet snow fell on the city. The residents of Washington D.C. were calmly sleeping in their homes, eager celebrate Christmas the next day. Some stayed wide awake, others sat by the fire with their friends and lovers sharing hot chocolate.

For once, everything seemed as it should be.

"Thomas, hurry up."

"I'm trying, can't you see? I said this would take a while, you just need to have some more patience."

"Do you even realize that any moment now, we could actually get arrested by the police? On Christmas Eve? Do you know how Aaron would react?" Thomas hummed 'We Wish You A Merry Christmas' as he gathered all the supplies into their car. A dog toy squeaked as it bounced on the ground. It was now covered in white flakes, possibly damp by the time it dried off.

James took in inventory of everything they had 'stolen' from the Petco. A bag of Wellness Natural Pet Food, a fluffy dog bed ( he highly doubted the puppy would use it often ), the dog toys, training pads, and all the things one should probably have if your raising a dog.

“You and Aaron need more Christmas spirit. Honestly, I probably would have brought that Burr along just because but the surprise is for him, y’know.”

He was still very unsure of this, since he'd never had a dog before and this decision was fairly impromptu. Even for a group like them.

When they drove here, they had mutually agreed to leave the money in the office after taking the items to assure the manager that they technically weren't robbed. Obvious evidence would be the doors being lock-picked and security cameras mysteriously shut off or blocked.

He wasn’t sure why he agreed to this. It was merely his bad fortune that Thomas had caught him brewing tea around 12 am and decided it was a good idea to bring along a wingman. Or boyfriend, whatever title he had in their trio.

Thomas grunted as he shoved everything back to make room for, well, more things. He slammed the trunk down and opened the car door for James, all the while grinning like a maniac.

”...Are you sure Aaron is going to like this? I mean, he’s not gonna outrageously be crude about it but you know he doesn’t like surprises.”

”Yes Jemmy, I realized a long time ago. But he does like animals. Specifically, dogs.”

“Well, of course. But how long have you’ve been planning this and why are we doing it on Christmas Eve? And where exactly are we gonna get a dog?”

“Hehe, you’ll figure it out.” He turned the ignition and started backing the car out, tapping his fingers on the wheel to an invisible beat. James Madison gawked at him, then shook his head and peered out the window to watch the snow drift to the ground. It was hardly unusual for them to left in the dark with whatever Thomas would be planning.

They drove onto the main street and took all the shortcuts, turning random corners and occasionally hearing people caroling outside the car.

A rowdy bunch of teenagers threw snowballs at them, splattering over the windshield. Thomas muttered a curse then took another turn on one of the boulevards.

James squinted his eyes to see a sign that read ‘D.C. Animal Shelter’. There’s was a slight sinking feeling in his stomach and wondering how exactly they were going to get a dog at this hour.

The only visible source of lighting was a weak glow from what was presumably the main office.

He winced as Thomas locked the car with a very loud beep! and stared through the window with a tense expression before sneaking around the back with a piece of metal flashing in his hand. Janes thought it would’ve been a better idea to shut off the cameras before he realized there weren’t any cameras.

And once again, he was standing by himself out in cold, windy weather. He sneezed rapidly, covering his face with the scarf he brought.

Thomas came back around to take James’s hand with a surprisingly gentle grip and led them to the ajar door. He heard random barking and squawking of birds.

“Thanks for coming along with me,” Thomas uttered in the near silence. James squeezed his hand instead of responding, nodding in his direction.

”Thomas, what do we even do next?”

”Don’t doubt me, I’ve got this down. Trust me, I’ve been here before.” _What?_

Thomas sprinted around, causing a commotion and checking cages. Somehow, he’d gotten hold of an oil canister and started lining the hinges of the door. The door flew open without a single noise.

James lagged along, scanning his surroundings to make sure no one else was in the building. He shoved off his shoes to avoid squeaking in his crocs too much. The thumping of paws and latches unlocking reverberated to him. James entered to the room, almost running right back out.

Inside, Thomas had accidentally let out an entire family dogs and there were 7 massive puppies running amok. A cheerful Saint Bernard sat attentively, wagging her tail excitedly.

_Must be thinking we’re bringing her food._

Thomas scrambled to pick up the puppies only to drop off puppies on the floor again. More dogs howled and pawed at their cages, eager to join the chaos. The few cats that were there curled in their corners and hissed at the canines.

”Thomas, I thought you knew what you were doing. They’re going to ruin your Christmas sweater Aaron and I knitted!” The puppies were scratching the fabric and nibbling the loose strings. Weirdly enough he looked like he was having the time of his life. Thomas grinned stupidly at him as he cuddled all the puppies.

“Stop worrying, we’ve got time. Come over here!”

James took a tentative step towards them, cautiously lowering himself to the floor. A puppy stared at him with large, round eyes. He glanced over at Thomas who was getting engulfed by the others and the mama dog.

He reached his hand behind the dog’s ear and gave it a soft scratch. A tongue lolled out it’s mouth, licking the tips of his fingers with a strange happiness. James could never understand how dogs worked.

He watched, as if in slow motion, Thomas Jefferson topple over from the mother’s Wright and smack his head into the cage behind him. An audible click and then hell broke loose.

A fat, dappled cat leaped at Thomas’s face and gave him a good cut over the nose. The howls and meows of the animals grew louder, roaring in his ears. The puppies gathered to their mother and shivered in a huddle. The 7th one had curled up in his lap.

The cats continued to hiss and tiptoe, but altogether didn’t pose a threat to them. They skittered off to the side and left the room, which thoroughly worried James. He didn’t want to be around when the workers and volunteers came in tomorrow.

James looked down at the bundle of fur lying on his lap and smiled warmly at it. Or her, as he figured.

“Shh, it’s okay puppers. Y’all gotta go back to the kennel now, hurry on up.” The dogs didn’t move so Thomas resolved to try and push the mother towards the cage. She growled and swatted at him, her paws slashing at his poofy hair.

“Oh Jemmy, would you mind giving the poor maiden over here some help.”

“I think we should adopt the girl right here and maybe one of her sisters?” he said suddenly. He was absentmindedly scratching her chin as she wriggled around. She was a massive pup, probably a few months old and bigger than her litter was. James had no doubt about the insanity she would bring to their house. Then he started giggling at the thought of Aaron knitting her a Christmas sweater.

Thomas nodded fervently and did a few stretches before half-pushing and half-holding the Saint Bernards to their cage. James scooted over to clutch a few puppies.

After a long 10 minutes of herding them in, Thomas had chosen the other girl to surprise Aaron with. He waved goodbye to all the dogs, with the cats still roaming about the building. If Thomas was called in by the manager tomorrow James wouldn’t be shocked.

Thy discovered a stash of Christmas dog treats and indulged their new family members with them.

“Wait, James! Go outside first and get the car going, I have something to take care of.” He didn’t bother to question his motives anymore.

While making the pups at home with a reindeer themed blanket in the back seats, Thomas slammed the back door shut as he held something covered by another blanket in his hand. A squawk pierced his ears and at that very moment James knew exactly what Thomas was going to do with it. And also explained why there was birdseed in the trunk.

“Thomas...”

“Say nothing James, say nothing.”

Right as Thomas said that, there was crashing noise from the inside and they watched in horror as the cats had somehow short circuited an entire block of stores and homes. Whether they had hit something in the power box, James’s earlier hunch was right.

“James-James! We gotta leave! Now!”

“But-“

Thomas frantically hopped into the drivers seat and shot off back into the city of lights and quiet, miraculously not killing the passengers in the back. Out of instinct, Thomas placed a hand on James’s thigh and rubbed light circles despite being the driver, possibly to calm him. He was far from being calm.

”Um, feeling more Christmassy? Merry? Joyful and triumphant?” He said nothing in response.

_Aaron is going to **murder** us._

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Christmas, no matter what kind of situation you’re in right now. And if you don’t celebrate Christmas, well just have an especially amazing day ;)


End file.
